Style Outperformer:
Sector Outperformers:
- 1) Homebuilders +4.17% 2) Biotech +2.41% 3) HMOs +2.39%
Stocks Rising on Unusual Volume:
- ESI, TTPH, QLGC, XLNX, PPC, REGN, SRPT, TXT, HAL, GBX, BAS, SUNE, FMI, EQIX, EMES, CJES, BCEI, CPHD, NYLD, HAL, SLB, MRC, BHI, SLCA, VMC, ICPT, HON, CHKR, WAL, NTCT, ITT, VC, HUN, WLL, TWC, LINE, ADTN, CLH, OXY and HDS
Stocks With Unusual Call Option Activity:
- 1) URBN 2) JDSU 3) WY 4) TWC 5) ESI
Stocks With Most Positive News Mentions:
- 1) TXT 2) BA 3) MS 4) PCYC 5) SLB
Charts:
Evening Headlines
Bloomberg:
- Putin Threatens EU Gas Squeeze Raising Stakes for Ukraine. Russian
President Vladimir Putin flew into Milan last night for peace talks
with European Union leaders after threatening to cut the supply of
natural gas through Ukraine if the government in Kiev diverts fuel for
domestic use. After missing an earlier meeting time because he
stayed on at a military parade in Serbia, Putin met German Chancellor
Angela Merkel shortly before midnight as they prepared for formal talks
on Ukraine scheduled for 8 a.m. today. Ukrainian President Petro
Poroshenko also
met Merkel as well as Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi and EU
President Herman van Rompuy.
- Asian Stocks Rebound From Six-Month Low on Fed Outlook.
Asian stocks rose from a six-month low after a Federal Reserve official
said the central bank should consider delaying the end of bond
purchases and U.S. data eased concern over the global economy. The
MSCI Asia Pacific Index (MXAP) climbed 0.1 percent to 134.93 as of 9:01
a.m. in Tokyo after closing yesterday at the lowest since March 25.
The gauge is heading for a sixth straight weekly decline as faltering
recoveries in China and Europe spark concern global economic growth will
slow and the Fed considers when to raise interest rates.
Wall Street Journal:
- In Liberia, U.S. Soldiers Race Ebola. As Outbreak Spreads, International Community Rebuilds Nation’s Health-Care System. American and Liberian soldiers hammer, saw and sweat in the afternoon
sun here in a frenetic campaign to build the county’s first
Ebola-treatment unit. Soon, the soldiers will have floodlights to work
round-the-clock shifts.
- Corporate-Debt Market Slows to a Crawl. Banks’ Reduction of Bond Inventories Is Fueling Lack of Liquidity. Corporate-bond investors have struggled this week to find trading
partners for some large orders, causing unusual price drops and raising
concerns that trading could freeze in future market turmoil.
- Global Markets Catch the Chinese Flu. The ill effects of Beijing’s borrowing and spending binge are rippling through the world economy. It has become almost politically correct to blame the latest global
growth scare on the usual suspects, Japan and Europe, and to suggest
that if only those skinflint Germans would spend more, all would be
better.
Fox News:
CNBC:
- Google(GOOG) shares slide after Q3 earnings miss. Google shares dipped after it delivered quarterly earnings and revenue that missed estimates. The online giant's cost per click—how much it earns when a user clicks its advertisers' ad—continues to decline. During the third quarter, CPC dropped 2 percent, year over year, versus expectations of a 4 percent decline, according to
StreetAccount. Meanwhile, the number of paid clicks rose about 17
percent from a year ago, compared to forecasts for growth of 23.5
percent, according to StreetAccount. Shares fell as much as 6 percent before easing in after-hours trading.
- Short seller Carson Block considers hedge fund firm. Short seller Carson Block, the founder of research firm Muddy Waters who
has exposed accounting problems at a slew of Chinese companies, said on
Thursday that he is seriously considering launching a hedge fund
investment firm.
Zero Hedge:
Business Insider:
Reuters:
- CF Industries(CF), Yara International end merger talks. CF Industries Holdings Inc ended merger talks with Norway's Yara International ASA after the companies failed to agree on terms of a deal that would have
created a global fertilizer giant with an enterprise value
approaching $30 billion.
- Fusion-io integration hurts chipmaker SanDisk's(SNDK) revenue forecast. Chipmaker
SanDisk Corp forecast current-quarter revenue below analysts' estimates
due to lower revenue from Fusion-io Inc, a solid-state storage products
maker it acquired in June. SanDisk's shares fell 5 percent in extended trading, after
the company also reported lower-than-expected revenue for the
third quarter.
Obama takes on coal with first-ever carbon limits
Read more at http://www.philly.com/philly/news/politics/20130919_ap_0f857b20e0c144a5a1e1b9dddc9f9d72.html#YRThyDOhArykUeYy.9Brazil cuts 2014 GDP growth forecast, keeps fiscal goaFed's Williams: Can't wait too long to raise rates
Evening Recommendations
Night Trading
- Asian equity indices are -1.0% to +.50% on average.
- Asia Ex-Japan Investment Grade CDS Index 126.0 -2.0 basis points.
- Asia Pacific Sovereign CDS Index 76.5 +2.75 basis points.
- NASDAQ 100 futures +.13%.
Morning Preview Links
Earnings of Note
Company/Estimate
Economic Releases
8:30 am EST
- Housing Starts for September are estimated to rise to 1008K versus 956K in August.
- Building Permits for September are estimated to rise to 1030K versus 998K in August.
9:55 am EST
- Preliminary Univ. of Mich. Consumer Confidence for October is estimated to fall to 84.0 versus 84.6 in September.
Upcoming Splits
Other Potential Market Movers
- The
Fed's Yellen speaking on inequality, Fed's Rosengren speaking and the
Canadian inflation data could also impact trading today.
BOTTOM LINE: Asian indices are mostly lower, weighed down by real estate and technology
shares in the region. I expect US stocks to open modestly higher
and to weaken into the afternoon, finishing modestly lower. The
Portfolio is 25% net long heading into the day.
Broad Equity Market Tone:
- Advance/Decline Line: Higher
- Sector Performance: Mixed
- Market Leading Stocks: Performing In Line
Equity Investor Angst:
- Volatility(VIX) 25.56 -2.53%
- Euro/Yen Carry Return Index 141.81 -.10%
- Emerging Markets Currency Volatility(VXY) 8.66 unch.
- S&P 500 Implied Correlation 67.11 -8.25%
- ISE Sentiment Index 79.0 -18.56%
- Total Put/Call .98 -25.19%
Credit Investor Angst:
- North American Investment Grade CDS Index 73.83 -.21%
- European Financial Sector CDS Index 78.14 +4.39%
- Western Europe Sovereign Debt CDS Index 34.89 +12.87%
- Asia Pacific Sovereign Debt CDS Index 76.94 +4.14%
- Emerging Market CDS Index 279.18 -3.21%
- China Blended Corporate Spread Index 348.92 +2.34%
- 2-Year Swap Spread 27.25 unch.
- TED Spread 21.25 -1.25 basis points
- 3-Month EUR/USD Cross-Currency Basis Swap -10.75 -.5 basis point
Economic Gauges:
- 3-Month T-Bill Yield .03% +2.0 basis points
- Yield Curve 182.0 +4.0 basis points
- China Import Iron Ore Spot $80.32/Metric Tonne -2.70%
- Citi US Economic Surprise Index 18.30 +6.0 points
- Citi Eurozone Economic Surprise Index -54.3 +2.8 points
- Citi Emerging Markets Economic Surprise Index -22.60 +1.3 points
- 10-Year TIPS Spread 1.90 +5 basis points
Overseas Futures:
- Nikkei Futures: Indicating -48 open in Japan
- DAX Futures: Indicating -23 open in Germany
Portfolio:
- Slightly Higher: On gains in my biotech sector longs and emerging markets shorts
- Disclosed Trades: Covered some of my (IWM)/(QQQ) hedges
- Market Exposure: Moved to 50% Net Long
Bloomberg:
- Advance of Islamist Terrorists Tests Obama’s Flat No on Ground Forces. President
Barack Obama is facing the slippery-slope problem in Iraq and Syria
that he’s sought to avoid, with some advisers concluding that limited
airstrikes are insufficient to break Islamic State’s momentum. As
airpower has failed to dislodge the extremists from the Syrian border
town of Kobani or halt their offensive in Iraq, Obama’s appeals for
strategic patience are being challenged by some U.S. military and
intelligence officers and diplomats who say more needs to be done.
- Greek Bond Rout Drags Down Markets From Ireland to France. Greece’s government debt is back in the spotlight and investors are looking for the exit. As the four-day rout in Greek bonds sent yields to the highest since
January, the selloff started to infect nations from Ireland to Portugal
and even larger countries such as France. In Spain, a debt auction fell
short of the government’s maximum target, and European stocks extended
their longest losing streak since 2003. German 10-year bunds fell for
the first time in three days, pushing the yield on the euro region’s
benchmark securities up from a record low.
- Russia’s $50 Billion Repo Pledge Fails to Halt Ruble Drop on Oil. The
ruble slid to a record as oil sank and a global market rout
overshadowed the Bank of Russia’s pledge of $50 billion to ease a
foreign-currency shortage. The currency slumped 1.3 percent to
46.1342 against the dollar-euro basket by 6 p.m. in Moscow, when the
central bank ends its daily market operations. The ruble temporarily
pared its drop after policy makers said they will offer as much as $1.5
billion of four-week repurchase agreements at its debut auction on Oct.
29.
- European Stocks Tumble to One-Year Low on Crisis Concern. (video) European stocks fell to this year’s low, with the benchmark index posting itslongest
slump in 11 years, as concern grew that a financial crisis is returning
to the region’s so-called peripheral nations. Even so, the Stoxx
Europe 600 Index pared a decline of as much as 2.9 percent after St.
Louis Federal Reserve Bank President James Bullard said the Fed should
consider delaying the end of its bond purchase program. The Stoxx 600 dropped 0.4 percent to 310.03 at the close, falling for an eighth day.
- Iron Ore Outlook Cut by UBS as Market Share Battle Picks Up. Global iron ore suppliers are locked
in a battle for market share as a surplus expands, according to
UBS AG, which cut price forecasts for 2015 and 2016 while
sticking with a call for an end-of-year rally this quarter. The steel-making raw material will average $85 a metric ton
in 2015 and $82 in 2016, analysts including Daniel Morgan said
in a report received today. Previously, the outlook for both
years was an average of about $103 a ton. Iron ore will rally
toward $100 this quarter as mills restock, the bank said.
- Volckerized Wall Street Dumping Bonds With Rest of Herd.
Corporate bond values are swinging the most in more than a year and
here’s one reason why: Wall Street’s biggest banks are following the
crowd and selling, too.Goldman Shares Fall on Bigger Trading Drop Than Rivals.
- Goldman(GS) Shares Fall on Bigger Trading Drop Than Rivals. (video) Goldman Sachs Group Inc. fell as much as 3.4 percent after posting a
bigger decline in trading revenue from the second quarter than
competitors including JPMorgan Chase & Co. The shares slid 1.8
percent to $174.03 at 11:45 a.m. in New York, the fourth-largest drop in
the 85-company Standard & Poor’s 500 Financials Index.
ZeroHedge:
Business Insider:
NBC:
- Obama May Send National Guard to Liberia to Fight Ebola: Sources. President
Barack Obama is expected to issue an executive order Thursday paving
the way for the deployment of National Guard forces to Liberia to help
contain the Ebola outbreak there, sources told NBC News. The sources
said that eight engineers and logistical specialists from the Guard,
both active-duty and reservists, would probably be included in the first
deployment. They are expected to help build 17 Ebola treatment centers,
with 100 beds apiece. Defense Department officials said that the
executive order was necessary to speed the deployments, and would allow
the president to send additional forces as needed.
Reuters:
- BOJ to stand pat even as inflation stalls, global markets tumble -sources.
Even as growth and deflation fears roil global markets and weak data
casts a shadow over Japan's economy, the Bank of Japan appears set to
resist pressure for more stimulus measures or to accept that its
inflation target is unrealistically high. People familiar with its
deliberations said the BOJ, which has failed for two decades to drag
Japan's economy from the grip of no or zero inflation, is preparing to
roughly halve its 1
percent economic growth forecast for this fiscal year, but stand
pat on policy and its prediction that inflation will hit its 2
percent target in the year from next April.
Financial Times:
Format:
- ECB Nowotny Says Expectations of ABS Volumes Exaggerated. "There
were exaggerated ideas about the purchasing volume," ECB Governing
Council member Ewald Nowotny said in an interview. ECB shouldn't
precommit on ABS purchase volumes, "quality is more important than
quantity," Nowotny said.
al-Hayat:
- Saudis Represent 60% of Islamic State Suicide Bombers. 12 out of
21 suicide bombers for Islamic State in Iraq were Saudi citizens, citing
announcements by Islamic State after each bombing since September.
Style Underperformer:
Sector Underperformers:
- 1) Internet -1.31% 2) Software -.72% 3) Steel -.64%
Stocks Falling on Unusual Volume:
- ESPR, NFLX, STO, LPL, BHI, SWN, SIX, XIV, TZOO, WGO, SAP, WAB, AKAM, BUD, TTPH, SYNT, UN, CMCSA, FITB, TWC, TX, SNY, NVS, QLYS, EBAY, SAFM, SIX, NTCT and PPC
Stocks With Unusual Put Option Activity:
- 1) QEP 2) CL 3) MS 4) FLEX 5) ITB
Stocks With Most Negative News Mentions:
- 1) EBAY 2) TSLA 3) STZ 4) BHI 5) FITB
Charts:
Style Outperformer:
Sector Outperformers:
- 1) Gaming +2.72% 2) HMOs +2.08% 3) Alt Energy +1.89%
Stocks Rising on Unusual Volume:
- SHPG, CHK, NLNK, BBEP, ETE, LINE, CMRX, TSM, WTI, FCS, ENLK, ICPT, SYRG, LINE, FCS, PAGP, LNCO, VNR, CMRX, PES, ENLC, SXL, LGCY, OKE, QEP, TRGP, CLD, OKS, CQP, MMP, ATLS, ETE, NRP, RES, AREX and EEP
Stocks With Unusual Call Option Activity:
- 1) XLNX 2) APD 3) ESI 4) LLTC 5) CHK
Stocks With Most Positive News Mentions:
- 1) CBS 2) AL 3) VSR 4) SUNE 5) URI
Charts:
